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Sept. 29: 'No Impact Man' Author Colin Beavan to Speak on Campus

Event Details

Date:
September 28, 2011

Times:
10 a.m.

Location:
Augustana Chapel of Reconciliation.

Dr. Colin Beavan, author of “No Impact Man: The Adventures Of A Guilty Liberal Who Attempts To Save The Planet And The Discoveries He Makes About Himself And Our Way of Life In The Process,” will speak about his experiences at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 29, in Augustana’s Chapel of Reconciliation.

Beavan’s visit is part of Augustana’s New Student Seminar (NSS), a course for first-year students designed to facilitate a successful transition into the Augustana community.

The discussion is free and open to the public, as space allows.

All NSS students will read Beavan’s book and will be asked to consider ways they can reduce their carbon footprint by reducing and reusing in all areas of their lives.

AUTHOR VISIT: Dr. Colin Beavan

- 10 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 29

- Chapel of Reconciliation

- Free and open to the public as space allows

Beavan’s book, which chronicles the year he and his family spent trying to live without negatively impacting the environment, illustrates the struggles, frustrations and discoveries that come with adjusting to a new lifestyle.

“This book, in short, is about my attempt with my little family to live for a year causing as little negative environmental impact as possible. If what I've described so far sounds extreme, that's because it's meant to be. My intention with this book is not to advocate that, as a culture, we should all give up elevators, washing machines, and toilet paper. This is a book about a lifestyle experiment,” Beavan says in the book. “It chronicles a year of inquiry: How truly necessary are many of the conveniences we take for granted but that, in their manufacture and use, hurt our habitat? How much of our consumption of the planet's resources actually makes us happier and how much just keeps us chained up as wage slaves?”

Interest in Beavan’s efforts also helped launch the No Impact Project, a nonprofit initiative offering opportunities for others to create their own version of Beavan’s No Impact Experiment.